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A Summary of the State of Natural Resources Report: an Assessment of the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources September 2016

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A Summary of the State of Natural Resources Report: an Assessment of the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources September 2016 A summary of the State of Natural Resources Report: An assessment of the sustainable management of natural resources September 2016 www.naturalresources.wales/sonarr A new approach This State of Natural Resources Report (SoNaRR) is the first of its kind in Wales. The approach of SoNaRR is ground-breaking. The report sets out the state of Wales’ natural resources. It assesses the extent to which natural resources in Wales are being sustainably managed, and recommends a proactive approach to building resilience. And - for the first time – the report links the resilience of Welsh natural resources to the well-being of the people of Wales. In this report we look at how pressures on Wales’ natural resources are resulting in risks and threats to long-term social, cultural, environmental and economic well-being, as set out in the Well-Being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015. We look at the key issues, as well as opportunities for integrated solutions that provide multiple benefits. Throughout the report, we highlight where there are gaps in evidence. We also indicate our level of confidence in the evidence that we have used. Management and use that re-invests in natural resources. Sustainable management Resilience of Benefits ecosystems maintained / maintained and enhanced. enhanced. Optimised use. Quantified by Quantified contribution to by well-being and assessment assessing (rates of of resilience and ways of) Ecosystem Over-use. use and management. functioning Benefits not compromised. optimised. Unsustainable Natural resources Well-being management declining compromised. Natural resources Use and management and ecosystems Management and use that over-exploits natural resources, or creates additional burdens and consequence for well-being. Start of a journey… Based on the evidence in SoNaRR, Welsh Ministers will set out their priorities for policy to address the sustainable management of natural resources. Area statements will be developed by Natural Resources Wales (NRW) with our partners and stakeholders to put this policy into action. This is the start of our journey. The way we report on the state of natural resources will develop and evolve over time. NRW wants to work with a variety of partners to improve the way we assess how Wales is managing its natural resources. We want to hear if there is evidence we have overlooked, and what people think of our assessments of resilience and risk. By working together, we can improve our understanding of what we all need to do to confront the challenges ahead – in particular, the risks presented by climate change and the threats to biodiversity. From Government to public sector to businesses to individuals – we all need to play our part. Together, we can build the resilience of natural resources and well-being in Wales. Why are natural resources important? Wales’ natural resources and ecosystems are at the heart of everything we do. Natural resources – our air, land, water, wildlife, plants and soil - provide our most basic needs, including food, energy and security. They help to keep us healthy. Mountains, Freshwater Moors & Coastal Heaths Semi Natural Margins Grassland Enclosed Woodland Animals, plants, etc Farmland Air, water, soil Marine Urban Minerals ecosystems Mountains, Geological Freshwater Moors & Coastal Heaths Semi Natural Physiographical Margins Grassland Processes Climatic & Features Enclosed Woodland Animals, plants, etc Farmland Air, water, soil Marine Urban Minerals Geological Physiographical Processes Climatic & Features natural resources When natural resources flourish, society and the economy thrive as well. Natural resources and ecosystems can help us to reduce flooding, improve air quality and supply materials for construction. They also provide a home for a variety of wildlife, and give us iconic landscapes to enjoy, which also boosts the economy through tourism. However, our natural resources are coming under increasing pressure – from climate change, a growing population and the need for energy production. Wales faces many challenges: securing low-carbon energy and fuel supply, creating jobs and income, tackling poverty and inequality, flooding and drought, and improving people’s health. Poorly managed natural resources and ecosystems increase the long-term risks to our well- being. Improving Wales’ management of natural resources means that we will be better able to tackle these challenges. We all need to look after our natural resources and ecosystems so they can continue to provide us with the things we need. Any decisions we make can have a knock-on effect on the environment as a whole, now and for many generations to come. Economic, social and cultural benefits… Wales’ natural resources provide us with many economic, social and cultural benefits. For example: • £385 million from agriculture to the Welsh economy every year. This figure underpins the £6.1 billion annual turnover and £1.55 billion gross value added attributed to the on-farm production and food manufacturing sector. • 951 million litres of drinking water per day. • 1.5 million tonnes of green timber a year, making construction easier and cheaper. • £499.3 million from the forestry sector* to the Welsh economy (*covers forestry and logging, manufacture of wood and products of wood and cork, and manufacture of paper and paper products). • 14 million tonnes of aggregates per year, for construction and other uses. • 8,919 gigawatt hours of energy from renewable sources, and rising, creating a renewable energy industry that employs 2,000 people. • 410 million tonnes of carbon stored in soil to soak up emissions and protect against climate change. • £2,870 million in tourism to Wales. • 28% of adults meeting the recommended level of physical activity through outdoor pursuits. • £18.2 million in health benefits to people from walking the Wales Coast Path. • £840 million and 30,000 jobs from the historic environment sector. Constant change… Wales’ natural resources are in a state of constant change. This has led to challenges such as pollution and climate change and damage to the ecosystems that provide us with the things we need. These impacts are the result of the choices people make every day. They present a risk to the resilience of Welsh ecosystems, which will impact on people’s well-being both now and in the future. To ease these pressures, we need to do things differently. The state of Wales’ natural resources Wales covers a land area of 2,078,224 ha. Our land supports our agricultural industry and provides a home for a variety of wildlife. Habitats help define the landscape of Wales with iconic elements, such as our dramatic coasts and uplands, extensive woodlands, marshland and heaths, rivers and lakes, and our extensive farmland. The Welsh marine area is vast, covering 41% of the territory of Wales. This includes part of the Irish and Celtic seas and Western Channel, and is also home to many different habitats and species. The full report looks in detail at the state of Wales’ natural resources, including animals, plants and other organisms, air quality, water resources, soils and minerals. It also looks at the condition of Welsh ecosystems, such as mountains, grasslands, woodlands, urban, freshwater and marine environments. Decades of work to understand and protect our natural resources have taken us a long way. Today, our rivers and beaches are cleaner, and our air is fresher. Our beautiful landscapes provide the people of Wales with world-class leisure and nature opportunities, and attract millions of tourists every year. However, there are between 40,000 and 50,000 early deaths in the UK every year due to air pollution. Many of our plants and wildlife are in decline. Wales - along with the rest of the UK and other countries - failed to meet its 2010 international and national biodiversity targets, and the decline has continued in many cases. We are also seeing changes in the amount of rainfall and increased flood risk. The expansion of Wales’ towns and cities and the trend of paving over gardens has reduced the ability of urban areas to soak up rain, reduce flooding, and provide a home for wildlife and greenspace for people. Being further from greenspace also impacts people’s physical and mental well-being. Wales has worked hard to find solutions, but more work remains. This report presents an opportunity to set out the evidence on the resilience of our natural resources, show the risks to well-being, highlight new opportunities to develop, and encourage people to work together to better manage our natural resources. While Wales clearly faces significant challenges, we can make improvements: safeguarding carbon stores to protect against climate change and soak up future emissions; maintaining food-producing capabilities; reducing the risk of flooding; retaining the distinctiveness of our landscapes; and improving the quality of our water and the connectivity of our habitats to enable species to move locations in order to survive. Managing natural resources differently will enable us to improve their resilience. What does ecosystem resilience mean? ‘Ecosystem resilience’ means how well ecosystems can deal with disturbances - either by resisting them, recovering from them, or adapting to them. Resilient ecosystems are able to carry on delivering services and benefits despite these disturbances. If they are not resilient, ecosystems aren’t able to work and deliver services and benefits. For example, if a woodland is planted only with trees of a single species and age, it is possible that all the trees could die from a single disease. The woodland would then not be able to deliver timber, carbon storage, recreation, and many other valuable services and benefits. Wales’s new natural resources legislative framework aims to build resilient ecosystems so that they can provide additional benefits to people’s well-being. In this report, resilience is considered in terms of diversity, extent, condition, connectivity and adaptability, which are based on the attributes described in the Environment Act.
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